Over the past two decades we have collected old gemstones, beads and other precious objects from the Himalayan region, including Tibet, Nepal, India, Afghanistan, Ladakh and northern China. We have incorporated these into contemporary, wearable jewelry.

Because the old stones are unique and irreplaceable every piece we make is different. Designs are inspired by the materials themselves. Old stones and glass beads were made by hand, which means they are very different to the mass-produced items used by the jewelry trade today. Many have also acquired patina with age.

We love the idea of using old materials, even though they are scarce. The oldest beads we have in our store currently date from the Neolithic period, around 5000-6000 years ago. To imagine the history of these items takes our breath away, and we hope our discerning customers agree with us.

left: necklace of old Indian glass beads, Tamang people, Tibet-Nepal border region

Nomad Tibetan jewelry

Tibetan jewelry using old nomad beads at Torana

Over the years we have traveled through a large part of Tibet and the surrounding Himalayan regions, buying Tibetan jewelry from nomadic people along the way. Nomad necklaces are amongst the most interesting from a historical point of view, as well as displaying distinctive and eclectic taste. Typically, nomad jewelry combines stones that may be centuries old, particularly agates, with stones of more recent vintage, even modern items. Nomads buy, swap and add to their necklaces and hand them down from generation to generation so that they evolve organically.

As well as agate, we commonly find dzi beads, copies of various kinds of dzi, including 19th century glass dzi and 20th century paste copies, coral, old red glass imitating coral and amber and its various imitations. Good amber is particularly rare, and usually separate from other materials since it wears out easily in contact with harder stones. Small bronze ornaments, thokcha and amulets are sometimes found as well.

We always try to keep nomad necklaces intact in their original arrangement, adding modern clasps and stringing to make them wearable.

right: old Tibetan nomad necklace

Ancient bronze and glass

Torana antique necklace made with bronze age arrowheads and contemporary pearls

Tibet and northern China were home to ancient cultures that used stone, bronze and glass long before recorded history. The Inner Mongolian region, Ordos region (north of Beijing) and the Tibetan plateau are particularly rich sources of ancient bronze items, amulets and stones.

We obtain these materials direct from traders. Each year the items available change: five years ago we obtained a unique haul of blue stones from the Inner Mongolian area, but since buying them we have not seen another piece of this type.

Northern China, Xinjiang and Afghanistan have rich neolithic cultures, characterised by pottery, jade and stone tools (some of the pottery has been used as backdrops for the photos on this page). We have re-used beads from these areas, that were presumably originally used in necklaces thousands of years ago.

Many beads seem to have been traded over long distances, so we sometimes find beads from Afghanistan that are identical or nearly so to beads thousands of miles further east in north China.

left: necklace of ancient bronze combined with contemporary grey pearls

Tribal jewelry

Neolithic (Hongshan culture) beads used in contemporary jewelry, by Torana

We use the term "tribal jewelry" to describe beads and other objects from the cultures along the southern edge of the Himalaya, in southern Nepal and in India. Like the nomad necklaces from Tibet this material has a unique character. It was made using locally worked gold and silver, combined with glass beads from several sources including Europe (Czechoslovakia) and India, combined with glass beads from local glassworkers. The commonest beads are small red glass beads imitating coral, but startling blue and yellow glass also occurs.

Glass was often combined with spectacular gold and silver amulets (such as tilhari), that were a store of wealth and wedding dowry items as well as objects of beauty. Old gold and silver are rare because such items were often melted down for re-use.

right: necklace of Neolithic beads, Hongshan culture

below: Tribal necklace, bone and glass beads, Tamang people